Pineapple Tarts 马来西亚凤梨酥

Finally, I made my own pineapple tarts after years craving for it. Pineapple tarts is one kind of chinese new year cookies which can be shaped by open-tart shape, open-ended roll, ball shape or fruit shape in malaysia, singapore or even in brunei or indonesia too. Indonesian pineapple tarts or better known as Nastar (ananastaart) have a slightly different with malaysia-nyonya, it containt some cheese in the pastry and it is always a ball shaped with a clove on the top. Well, taiwanese pineapple shortbread which better known as Feng Li Shu (凤梨酥)is quiet similiar too, the filling may combine with some winter melon and the pastry is a kind of shortbread and it is usually need holded by square cookie cutters. Why peoples love to serve pineapple tarts during new year? Pineapple in chinese-hokkien dialets means 'prosperity come' an auspicious symbol for the new year.

Source: Recipe from pineapple moulds

Ingredients:

Filling:
250- 400g grated pineapple
125g sugar
some cinnamon and star anise
Pastry:
250g butter
125g icing sugar
2 egg yolks
270g flour
200g custard powder
1/4tsp vanilla

Methods:

1. Prepare the filling one night before. Cook the filling over medium heat till thick and dry . Set aside and let it cool completely.
2. Cream butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat well.
3. Sift icing sugar, flour and custard powder into the mixture. Fold to incorporate all ingredients to form a smooth pastry dough.
4. Roll out the dough till it's about 0.7 cm thick. Cut into shapes with a pineapple tart mould. Brush sides of tarts with egg wash. Bake in a greased, lined baking tin for 10 minutes.
5. Remove tarts from the oven. Fill centre of tarts with some pineapple jam. Return tarts to oven to bake for a further 10 minutes, or until golden brown.Cool the tarts on wire rack.


Notes:
1. I used canned pineapple in stead of fresh pineapple and I onitted the sugar. I cooked it with the syrup till thick and dry enough to form a paste.
2. I used only 60g icing sugar for the pastry as my pinepple filling is sweet enough for me.
3. I didn't use cinnamum or anise cause I don't really like the smell.